Layby your dream holiday with Mondo Travel

Layby? Really?

Most Kiwis fondly remember LAYBY from the 70’s and 80's, then came hire purchase, with deferred payments and interest free terms incurring additional costs if payments defaulted, not to mention unwanted debt for many, and a bad credit rating for some.

Mondo Travel is re-introducing the LAYBY concept for people to pre-pay their holidays, destination weddings, honeymoons, renewal of vows, 60th birthdays, groups, family reunions, company incentives, or perhaps those Bucket List dreams!

LAYBY’ing a holiday allows us all to manage our budgets sensibly and reasonably, whilst ensuring we’re not stressing about large credit card bills and crippling interest. It’s fair to say that by choosing to have a small amount taken from your bank account every pay day over a period ranging from 6 months to 2 years to pay for your holiday, it would free you up to concentrate on your actual ‘rainy day’ savings, as well manage other day to day bills and expenses.

Mondo Travel is the only New Zealand chain of retail stores to offer a LAYBY option. All retail travel chains offer finance, however we think that the credit authorisation process, combined with the many unknown risks are not always practical for Kiwis. However, like anything there are many pro's and con's to LAYBY, but we believe after consultation with our customers and our own research, that we now have a transparent LAYBY model that has been tested and proven over the last 3 years and we encourage everyone to make contact with a Mondo Travel specialist to discuss how LAYBY can work as a payment option for your next trip

What is LAYBY?

Layby is pre-paying your holiday with NO INTEREST, BEFORE you depart New Zealand, by way of a fortnightly or monthly payment deducted from your bank account. This direct debit is authorised by you and is transacted by a very reputable company called Debit Success. You may already be familiar with Debit Success, as they look after many of the gym memberships around the country.

Is my money safe?

All client funds go into an untouchable trust account for payment to suppliers when your Mondo Travel specialist needs to make the appropriate deposit payments or final balance payments. All Mondo Travel stores are bonded with TAANZ (Travel Agent Association of New Zealand) which secures all client funds should any travel business close, liquidate or any owner declare bankruptcy. This offers you two safety nets to ensure that your money remains 100% safe. At Mondo we recommend that if you are not dealing with us and are currently booking with another retail travel store, that you do check that they are TAANZ bonded. You might be very surprised who isn't!

Now that I know my money is safe, where do I start?

You simply contact us and we’ll book in a time suitable to contact you to discuss your holiday options. We’ll ask you questions like: When you would like to go? How many people will be travelling? Do you want to LAYBY just your holiday or your spending money as well? We’ll then work out how much the total cost of the package will be and then advise you of the upfront deposit that is required (if any) and any cancellation policies applicable. Our Mondo Travel specialist will then calculate the weekly rate and this can be debited from your account on a fortnightly or monthly basis to work in with pay cycles or income streams.

I know I want to start my LAYBY for my holiday with Mondo but I am not 100% sure what, where, who with or when I want to go?

Some of our current clients use the LAYBY your holiday as savings scheme. These are the people that know they are going to take holiday (some when??) and they are more interested in making and starting an investment in their holiday NOW, versus being faced with large bill on their credit card or overdraft. We’ll put a stake in the ground with a dollar figure and then calculate back based on the timeframes of when you THINK you might travel.

But, couldn’t I just purchase a holiday on a ‘special deal’ now with another travel company or online?

Yes you can! At Mondo Travel we certainly allow our customers to purchase by cash or credit card for a PAY NOW holiday. These PAY NOW holidays will normally have payment deadlines (i.e. instantly or within 48 hours) as well as strict conditions such as no changes and no refunds if cancelled. When you LAYBY your holiday you get to make your own decision in your own time without making a major commitment to a ‘USE IT or LOSE IT’ holiday. At Mondo we know that life can be unpredictable, so it’s very much is about enabling you to purchase FLEXIBILITY, that allows for changes or sudden things that might crop up.

Does that mean the price is more expensive?

More than likely YES, it will be in the long term, particularly when it comes to the airfare component of your holiday. If we book a fully flexi fare you pay a higher premium than a fare with conditions (in travel we like to refer to them as 'strings') attached. With cruising and coach touring we’ll normally require a deposit of some sort up front to secure an exact cabin category on a specific itinerary to ensure we have your special place locked in and committed (that’s IF you know what you want to book, and if the particular voyage or departure is open for booking). The good news is that your Mondo Travel specialist will discuss all options with you in terms of deposits, cancellation policies and when the final balance is due, as well as make the comparisons on a PAY NOW price so that you can truly evaluate and make your final purchasing payment decision. We are more than happy to look at part PAY NOW and part LAYBY – it doesn’t necessarily need to be one or the other, you may have already saved for half of your trip and are just looking to be able to pay the rest off over a period of your choosing.

What communication do I get from Mondo with balances and how are my savings are tracking?

The great news is when dealing with a real person instead of an online booking system, we are in communication with you on a regular basis. At any time we can access your paid amount and also track and confirm all payments made on what day and for how much. We are only too happy to provide you with a statement at your request. We have found that our clients love to talk to us in person, whether that’s in the office, by phone or on email and we find that they are very content with this. We also get the opportunity to talk to our customer about the 'good oil' - actually planning their holiday and making it better than what they thought it was going to be (or ever could be).

Our first priority is to ensure that we continue the payments somehow, to ensure that the LAYBY doesn't fall over. We can do that in a couple of ways; we can put it on hold for a few months by taking a ‘payment holiday’ or reduce the actual payment amount (which means it will take longer to achieve your savings goal, but it ‘will’ happen!)

If my LAYBY falls over, do I lose everything?

If there is no possible way you can stay committed to the LAYBY then on your authorisation we will terminate the LAYBY and hold whatever payments you have made with your Mondo Travel store (completely safe). If we have made any payments on your behalf to our travel suppliers (e.g. airlines, hotels or cruise companies) then these amounts would probably be forfeited. Any balance of funds in credit must be used within a 12 month period from the date of your termination. More serious circumstances can be addressed on a case-by-case basis with the utmost sensitivity.

In summary

We know that LAYBY is a very historical payment concept and society today is geared towards instant gratification, ‘buy now, pay later, I want it now, now, now!’ being debt based solutions! Has this really been in your best interest, as this mounting debt is largely to blame for the global financial crisis. It's time to get more responsible with our money, whilst still not missing out on all the good stuff, like holidays! We know that by giving you as many payment options as possible, allows you to comfortably make a payment decision with the freedom to put your hard-earned funds towards what will be a very special and memorable experience. At Mondo we are all about 'moments, not just monuments' and with a LAYBY holiday, we help you get one step closer to creating life-long memories.